A delegation led by the Jawaharlal Nehru University Teachers’ Association last week submitted to Vice-Chancellor Jagadesh Kumar a chargesheet charging him with “violations of statutory provisions and harassing teachers and students”. The charge-sheet also asked him to respond to the allegations before October 20 failing which, they would start a “public inquiry” into the charges.
No response
The JNUTA said that since no response has been received from the V-C, they are organising a public inquiry on October 23 which is expected to continue every evening till October 27. The JNUTA said that the public inquiry is a “mode of protest modelled on an official inquiry but derives its legitimacy not from powers vested in any statutory authority but by being an expression of the collective sentiment of teachers of JNU”.
‘Severe damage’
Through this public inquiry, the JNUTA says that it seeks to bring out in the public domain a comprehensive picture of the severe damage being done to a public institution by its current administration under the leadership of the V-C. “In order that concerned members of the public may also be able to arrive at an informed judgement, the inquiry process will try to present the issues comprehensively by giving space to the JNU Administration’s viewpoint,” said the association.
Explaining the format, the JNUTA said that in each hearing, a group of teachers will present before a panel of public figures drawn from different walks of life their case on one or two charges listed in the charge-sheet.
“Oral presentation of the case will accompany a written submission with enclosures of all relevant documents. On behalf of the Vice-Chancellor, a ‘defence’ will also be presented even if he himself or his designated representative is absent,” said the JNUTA.
They said that at the end of each day’s proceedings, panellists will give their preliminary observations and will also be requested to follow it up with a written note articulating their ‘verdict’ on the charges. These will then be compiled together to form a final report to be presented on the last day of the trial which is October 27.
In the 10-page memorandum, the V-C has been charged with “destruction of institutional rules and norms, conventions, ethos and culture of JNU, violating statutory provisions, undermining the integrity of the faculty selection process, wasting public money, violating the CEI Act and reservation policy, harassing teachers, assaulting democracy and promoting authoritarianism”. The other criticisms he is facing is for undermining JNU's anti-sexual harassment policy (GSCASH) and for displaying a callous attitude toward the Najeeb Ahmed investigation.
